The vice-president of a historic society has moved to distance it from one member’s opinion that it has allowed Pictish history to be ”Disney-ised.”
A comment from former Pictish Arts Society newsletter editor David Henry made some claims as to the society’s complicity in allowing Angus Council to simplify its promotional material for Pictavia in Brechin.
In Tuesday’s Courier Mr Henry was quoted as saying: ”Young minds are being contaminated by ill-conceived fantasies” and ”the characters seem to have stepped out of a Disney-type animation” (link).
However, the society’s vice-president Stewart Mowatt was at great pains to state that, while he respected Mr Henry’s viewpoint, he was of the opinion that a more appealing, less academic focus on Pictish history is more important in attracting children.
Mr Mowatt also said he was happy with the society’s links with the council and wanted to express the views of the society as a whole.
He said: ”Our last newsletter carried a criticism of the recent Pictavia material, but it is only his (Mr Henry’s) personal opinion.
”Almost all of the committee are happy with the factual elements at Pictavia, but we are quite happy to have the whole Pictish diaspora reach out to a wider audience.
”It’s not quite Disney-ised but I understand where he is coming from. If it takes a lighter touch to get the kids involved, we are fine with that.”
Of Mr Henry’s comments, he said: ”I run a motorcycle newsletter myself and my editorial is often run off without anyone else reading it. That’s the nature of these things.”
Mr Henry’s business workload as a publisher caused him to step down as newsletter editor and take a back seat in the society.
On the fortunes of the Pictavia centre which has seen incomes labour against operating costs since it opened in 1999 Mr Henry said he did not intend his article to declaim the centre’s efforts.
”It is a political hot potato but the piece was not intended as editorial, rather as a means of getting my point across,” he said.